Right now at Ladurée on Madison Avenue, you will find seasonal menthe glacée, melon, Venezuelan chocolate, and chocolate with coconut marshmallow macarons!
Ladurée’s summer flavors 2013
19 Friday Jul 2013
Category Archives: snacks
Grilled Lobster (WARNING: graphic content)
04 Thursday Jul 2013
Posted in American, beverages, Boston, celebrations, fish, herbs and spices, insects, lactose free, New York, recipe, seafood, snacks
I’m in Cape Cod for the week and it’s a tradition to make lobster rolls and take them to the beach (along with a bottle of rosé and some Cape Cod chips). This year, we decided to grill the fresh lobster instead of boiling it.
Even though lobsters don’t have a central nervous system or central cortex (and are unlikely to register pain), I plunged a sharp knife between its eyes in order to kill the lobster quickly and humanely. After the jump, you will see some very GRAPHIC IMAGES of the butchering of the fresh lobster, along with a recipe… CLICK HERE FOR GRAPHIC LOBSTER PHOTOS
2013 Balut Eating Contest in NYC
03 Wednesday Jul 2013
Posted in allium, American, Asian, bucket list, celebrations, Filipino, herbs and spices, Malaysian, meat, New York, snacks, Williamsburg
The 2013 Balut Eating Contest will be held at the Hester Street Fair on August 3, 2013. The contest is run by the awesome people at Maharlika. I came in second place last year and I am so honored to have been invited back again this year!
Balut eggs are delicious fertilized duck eggs that are cooked and eaten with salt and vinegar. If you’re lucky sometimes you will find a bit of beak, bones, and feathers! This year I am going to bring a little garlic and chili, if they allow condiments again like they did last year.
(images via All That Shnazz and NYC loves NYC)
Cowgirl Creamery Contest
30 Sunday Jun 2013
Posted in American, California, celebrations, cheese, dairy, goat milk, herbs and spices, New York, organic, snacks, Uncategorized
Some of my absolute favorite artisan cheeses are made by Cowgirl Creamery in Pt. Reyes, California. You can find these excellent cheeses in New York City at almost every Whole Foods location.
A few weeks ago I entered a contest on the creamery’s Facebook page to win some of their cheeses! I had to submit a video of myself singing a song about cheese to the tune of Sweet Dreams by the Eurythmics.
It goes like this: “Sweet dreams are made of cheese, who am I to diss a Brie? I cheddar the world and the feta cheese, everybody’s looking for Stilton.”
Here is my video:
I guess people on Facebook liked the video because I just found out that I won the contest! I am so excited to try the cheeses that they’re going to send! I will post pictures of the package when it arrives!
Thanks, Cowgirl Creamery!
Chapulines
22 Saturday Jun 2013
Posted in allium, American, autochthonous, BBQ, celebrations, education, foraging, herbs and spices, insects, lactose free, meat, Mexican, Queens, snacks, spicy
Chapulines are a variety of grasshopper commonly eaten in some parts of Mexico. They are typically fried on a comal with garlic, lime juice, and salt flavored with agave worm extract. This tangy, aromatic snack can occasionally be found at delis and groceries in Corona, Queens.
I was able to sample some excellent chapulines this week when a student brought them in to share with the class. I expected them to be crispy but they were definitely of the juicy side, especially the plump abdomens.
Top 10 Most Painful Foods to Eat
22 Saturday Jun 2013
Number 10: Stouffer’s French Bread Pizza The sharp, jagged edges of a Stouffer’s pizza will lacerate the soft palate of your mouth and the blisteringly hot cheese will cause second-degree burns.
Number 9: Nagaimo (Dioscorea opposita) Irritant oxalate crystals in the skin of this mountain yam can leave some people’s hands prickly and tingly. Soak the whole thing in a little bit of vinegar and water to reduce the irritation.
Number 8: Sphenopalatine ganglioneuralgia The common name for sphenopalatine ganglioneuralgia is brain freeze. It happens when the capillaries near the sinuses are rapidly cooled and then warmed.
Number 7: Chicharrones As we get older our teeth get more brittle. Be careful when you’re eating crunchy chicharrones because you might chip your teeth!
Number 6: Lemon juice in a hangnail Whatever you do, do not do a Google image search for “hangnail”.
Number 5: Putting in contacts after chopping jalapeño peppers One way to neutralize the stinging capsaicin from the peppers is to flush your eyes with milk.
Number 4: Triangular Flapjacks The “texture and shape” of triangular flapjacks are dangerous enough to warrant a ban at a school in England! A student was injured by one of the mucronate corners of the snack.
Number 3: Mochi Choking on these sticky rice cakes sends, on average, 100 people to the hospital every year in Tokyo alone. Some deaths have also been caused by elderly people choking on mochi served as part of zōni, a rice cake soup.
Number 2: Xiǎolóngbāo Soup dumplings are one my my favorite foods but I always get burned by the piping hot liquid inside. The dumplings are filled with meat or seafood along with a gelatine made from broth and aspic. When they are steamed, the gelatine melts and becomes a delicious soup. If you don’t let the broth spill out onto your spoon first to let it cool, prepare for third-degree burns on your tongue.
Number 1: Tortilla Chips The salty, rough edges of tortilla chips always slice open the corners of my mouth. Last night I accidentally swallowed a whole tortilla chip and it ripped open a giant gash in my esophagus!
What are some food that have been painful for you to eat?
First Look Inside M. Wells Steak House
19 Wednesday Jun 2013
Posted in American, Brooklyn, bucket list, celebrations, education, fish, French, herbs and spices, Japanese, Korean, meat, New York, Québécois, Queens, seafood, snacks, urban, Williamsburg
Here is a first look at the new M. Wells Steak House in LIC! Is that the cement trout trough there on the left?
M. Wells Steak House
18 Tuesday Jun 2013
There is a rumor going around that Hugue Dufour and Sarah Obraitis from M. Wells Dinette are planning on opening their new steak house this summer in Long Island City. I am very skeptical because… well, remember what happened last time?!
The LIC Post has reported that there will be a 24 square foot concrete trough for holding live trout.
This is the purported location of the new steak house: 43-15 Crescent Street in Queens. It’s an old auto body repair shop.
I’m going to check out the location this week to see if I can see anything inside the building!
cicada macarons
18 Tuesday Jun 2013
I went cicada hunting in Staten Island on Sunday. The brood II cicadas emerge only once every 17 years and I needed to catch some to make a batch of cicada macarons.
This cute one crawled up my leg!
I am storing them in the freezer until I’m ready to cook them.
Please check back soon for photos of the cicada macarons and a recipe!
Mamak
15 Saturday Jun 2013
Posted in Asian, BBQ, bucket list, celebrations, fish, halal, herbs and spices, Malaysian, meat, New York, Queens, seafood, snacks, spicy, urban
I had one of the top ten meals of my entire life last night at Mamak, a brand new Malaysian restaurant that serves authentic Penang style halal cuisine! It’s the only place in New York City that exclusively features this delectably complex culinary tradition on their menu.
Mamak is a colloquial term used in Malaysia to refer to Tamil Muslims who operate roadside food stalls, mamak stalls. Above is the udang nasi kandar, a generous portion of succulent shrimp with a spicy mamak style sauce.
Murtabak is a stuffed and folded savory crêpe. The name comes from the Arabic word “مطبق” (folded). At Mamak murtabak is stuffed with minced beef and egg, and served with pickled red onions. We were blown away by the subtly complex flavors of the beef inside. There was definitely a hint of cumin — and maybe aniseed, clove, coriander, and cinnamon?
You must try the lamb satay. The meat is so tender it melts in your mouth! Cubes of rice, cucumber, and red onion are served on the side, along with a bit of the most delicious peanut sauce I have ever tasted!
We got to meet the amazing owner and chef, Nani Yusof Hughie! Thank you, Nani, for such amazing meal! We will be back soon!
Mamak
35-20 Farrington
Flushing NY 11355
(718) 886-4828
Chinook Olive 